RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Veteran Brazil striker
Romario said on Thursday he was 16 goals short of reaching the
1,000 mark and had received an offer to continue his career in
Australia.
The 40-year-old told reporters at Rio de Janeiro airport that his
contract with Miami FC had finished and he was still pondering his
future.
'It was a positive experience, I scored 20 goals in 27 matches and
the standard was better than I expected,' he said of his five
months in the United States.
'The 1,000 goals are not an obsession for me, but I'm very close,'
he said. 'I don't know if I'm going to get there but all my friends
and family are keeping count.'
When Romario joined Miami FC -- who play in the U.S. Soccer League
rather than the more prestigious Major League Soccer (MLS) -- from
Brazil's Vasco da Gama in March, his tally was reported to be
964.
Brazilian media have long questioned Romario's total, however,
saying it includes goals from youth team matches and training
games.
Earlier this year, Vasco da Gama declared some pre-season practice
games as official friendlies to give Romario a better chance of
pushing his total towards 1,000 goals.
Romario said he had spoken to Adelaide United about a possible move
to Australia.
'Yes, playing in Australia is a possibility,' he said. 'The
representatives of Adelaide were in Miami last week, but it was
just a first conversation.'